


another man's garbage

by meribiaa (lividlillies)



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-18
Updated: 2016-05-18
Packaged: 2018-06-09 04:02:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6889195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lividlillies/pseuds/meribiaa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nishinoya meets someone as intense as he is. He treasures him.</p>
<p>Can be read as a prologue to <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/6870880">that's intense, doc</a>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	another man's garbage

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [a tweet](https://twitter.com/mokubah/status/731546470835486720), I decided to try writing my own version of the Tanaka/Noya Origin Story. 
> 
> There's not much romance in here (you can definitely squint though, eyes emoji), but, that said, I can still pull out my wallet and show you the wedding pictures.

Noya doesn’t mind being picked last for teams. No—it’s true. He’s short, thin, it’s not that big of a surprise when it happens. And anyway, the important thing was getting to play the game, putting everything you had into it, knowing you outdid your last performance. He might be picked last for the first game, but it didn’t often happen a second time.

It’s the first day, and all the first year boys are lined up on the edge of the volleyball court as Captain Akune explains that they’ll be playing a traditional, get-to-know-you, three-on-three match. Since there’s so many first years, they’ll be having two matches. They’re picking teams for the first match now.

“Tanaka-kun,” Akune says, singling out a guy with a closely shaved head. Tanaka snaps to attention, eager. “You’ll pick one team. Ennoshita-kun,” Akune looks to a serious looking kid with black hair. “You’ll pick the other. Winner of the coin toss goes first.”

Ennoshita nods, steps up to stand with Akune and Tanaka.

Noya ignores the coin toss in favor of looking over the competition. One guy looks scrawny, but eager, a gleam in his eyes that Noya respects. A stocky one watches the proceedings with interest—with his height and build, he’s used to being picked first, Noya guesses, and he wants that to happen again here. There’s a couple other guys Noya finds noting, one with spiky hair, but a dull expression, and another kid with a closely shaved head.

He wonders which of them will be playing in the first game.

Ennoshita wins the coin toss.

He hesitates for a polite moment, then selects Yamamoto, the stocky one. Yamamoto looks pleased, relaxes.

_Yeah, yeah_ , thinks Noya, shaking his head.

Tanaka goes next.

He walks straight to Noya and puts his hand on his shoulder. “Nishinoya-kun, right?”

Noya’s jaw drops. The other guys are just as shocked, except for Akune, who only looks quietly pleased.

 Ennoshita picks Kazuhito next. Tanaka selects Yoneda to round off his team.

“An odd first choice,” Ennoshita says to Tanaka.

Tanaka folds his arms over his chest and casts a truly terrifying face at Ennoshita.

“I’m against discrimination,” he shoots back, making Ennoshita flinch.

“Oh, um, of course.”

“I’m sure Ennoshita-kun is, too,” says a second year, a steady looking guy Noya remembers as Daichi. He can’t recall his last name.

Noya grins as Tanaka comes to stand with him and Yoneda.

“Against discrimination?”

Tanaka grins widely. “What can I say? I’m a good person.”

Noya says nothing, just tilts his head and studies Tanaka. Maybe that’s true.

The other teams are selected from the remaining boys, and then split off for group practice. Just before they’re called back to the court for the first game, Tanaka pulls Yoneda and Noya aside. If Yoneda can handle setting, Tanaka will handle the offense. He says nothing about Noya.

Yoneda takes one look at Noya, looks back at Tanaka, and says, “Okay.”

Noya bristles, but says nothing. He wants to say, ‘who got picked first, me or you, buddy?’, but that’s petty, and anyway, being picked first didn’t really reflect anything about anyone except the assumptions of the person doing the picking.

The upperclassmen call for the game to start.

They volley back and forth. It’s nothing exciting or revolutionary. Noya’s having fun, getting into the swing of it, and his focus narrows to the court in the way he loves.

By the time the score is 12-2 in Tanaka’s team’s favor, a budding realization seems to blossom in those playing and watching.

It’s not that Yoneda is a particularly good setter. He’s not. And Tanaka’s spikes might be strong, but they were all obvious plays, often slamming through the opposing team’s defense through sheer force of will more than any strategic planning.

Their team’s strength was its defense.

Noya stands, arms open, stance wide, and breathes deeply as the people around him become slowly and all-at-once aware of his strength as a player.

He loves this moment.

He _lives_ for this moment.

So, it seems, does Tanaka.

Tanaka turns half around to grin manically at Noya, then turns back to Ennoshita’ team.

He _cackles_.

“Didn’t you guys pay attention last year? This guy’s an award winning libero!” Tanaka throws his head back and laughs loudly at the dumbstruck faces on the opposing team. “And you passed him up!” Tanaka crows. “I thought for sure losing the coin toss was gonna cost me Noya, but you passed him!”

Noya kinda loves this guy.

They win 25 to 5. Tanaka declares it ‘practically a shutout!’ and does outrageous poses to celebrate.

Yoneda watches, bemused, as Noya joins him.

#

As their first round of exams approach, Tanaka invites some of the first years over to his house for a study session.

Noya _loves_ this kind of study session. He’s stretched out on his stomach, dangling his feet in the air as he reads the latest Weekly Jump.

The conversation cycles through the usual topics—volleyball, girls, how much exams suck, manga, and the latest video games. Tanaka’s older sister recently got a PSP, and Tanaka gets to borrow it sometimes.

Noya briefly closes his eyes, relaxing into the easy comfort of the evening.

“Hey,” Yoneda says. “Won’t your parents be angry if they come up and find us slacking?”

“Mine would,” Noya says with a snort. He looks over his shoulder at the group.

Tanaka fidgets uncomfortably.

“Have your parents even come home yet?” Ennoshita asks. He leans back to look at Tanaka’s alarm clock. “It’s getting kind of late.”

“Oh!” Tanaka says, standing up. “That reminds me—did you guys want snacks?”

That distracts everyone, including Noya, from the question.

#

Practice only gets more—not less—intense as summer draws closer. Noya thrives in the brutal conditions Coach Ukai throws at them.

He feels himself improving, watches as the best of his teammates, do, too. It’s a heady feeling. A victory over themselves, over their old limits. He wants to yell _bring it on_!

Not everyone feels the same way.

The grumbling starts off small, but gets gradually louder and more frequent, especially as the heat begins to settle down around them. It reaches a peak during a particularly grueling practice on receives. Coach Ukai has been slamming shot after shot at them from the top of a table. It’s pretty genius, in Noya’s opinion—they don’t have to wait for the setup of the spike, and Coach Ukai can aim the ball at their weak spots.

He loves it.

The only way to get better at receiving is to receive. And receive, and receive, and _receive_ , until your body is moving on instinct, has memorized how the ball looks as it drops, the way your feet feel beneath you, the way you have to shift them to center yourself. You have to receive until you know exactly how to balance yourself as you stretch out, and the angle your arms need to take the ball in order to send it to the setter. Noya could explain the concept to an infant, and they’d appreciate the lesson more than half the club.

Even Tanaka, when he thinks Noya isn’t looking, looks worn out by Coach Ukai’s routines.

“Must be nice,” someone—Yoneda?—snipes from behind Noya. “To be a prodigy at receiving.”

“Yeah,” Yamamoto agrees with a sigh, wiping his face with a towel. “You must have been born with good reflexes,” he says to Noya.

“No,” Noya snaps. “I just practice a whole fucking lot.”

He storms out.

Noya goes to the race track. He’s tired of the complaining and the whining and the bodies being dragged reluctantly to the court. Where was the enthusiasm? Didn’t they love the sport?

Why didn’t anyone ever see it the way Noya did?

_Too intense_.

That’s what Captain Hasegawa had said in Jr High.

“You’re just too intense, Noya,” he’d said. “Take it easy on the first years. They’re not like you.”

_Not like me?_ He’d thought, and he thinks again, now. _What the hell does that mean?_

Noya runs, pushing his frustration out through his feet and through the exertion of his muscles. He runs until it’s dark, and he’s missed the rest of practice.

When he finally returns to the gym to collect his things, there are only a couple people left.

Two second years, Daichi, and a guy with a mischievous smile and silver hair, Sugawara-but-call-me-Suga, are practicing spiking and setting together. Akune is talking to Coach Ukai.

And in the corner of the gym, practicing jump serves, is Tanaka.

Noya walks over to him.

Tanaka wipes sweat from his face with the top of his t-shirt. “Asahi-senpai gave me some tips on the jump serve,” he explains, even though Noya didn’t ask.

“Lemme see,” Noya says, hands on his hips.

Tanaka does. Noya watches.

“You’re going to be the ace in our third year,” Noya says, entirely without meaning to.

Tanaka goes red, scratches the back of his head.

“It—it wasn’t that good,” he says.

“No,” Noya agrees. “It was crap.”

Tanaka gapes at him.

Noya points at the open door, letting in the still-too-warm night air. “But you’re the only one still here.”

Tanaka stares at him for a moment, then shyly glances at away, embarrassed.

“Thanks,” he says, his voice uncharacteristically meek. It strikes Noya that he’s someone whose opinion Tanaka respects, and that’s why he’s so moved by the comment.

_Noya_ feels moved.

He clears his throat.

“You’ll never be the ace like that, though,” he declares. “You need more practice. I’ll receive for you—I heard there’s a guy at Aoba Jousai with a mean jump serve I should prepare for.”

Tanaka grins. Grabs another ball.

Just as they’re winding down, Akune approaches them with a form in hand. Noya recognizes it as the permission slip for the summer training camp.

“Tanaka-kun, could we chat for a second?”

Noya nods at Tanaka, watches him go. They don’t move very far away, and Noya hears them speaking.

“The form needs to be signed by your parents,” Akune says. “Your sister’s signature isn’t enough, even if she is an adult.”

“Yeah,” Tanaka says gruffly. “Sorry about that. I’ll—” he takes the form back, looks at it strangely.

_Weird guy,_ Noya thinks for a second. He gathers up his things, grabs Tanaka’s towel and throws it at his face as he passes.

“Good work today,” he says, heading out.

“Thanks,” Tanaka says, sounding like himself again. “You too.”

#

The next day at lunch, Tanaka calls Noya out of his classroom.

“I have a mission for you,” he tells Noya solemnly. “If you so choose to accept it.”

Noya snaps his feet together. Salutes. “Sir!”

Tanaka grins, drags him down the hall and outside to the courtyard. He points to one of the trees. Asahi is sitting there, quietly reading a book. He’s by himself.

“He has lunch there every day with Daichi-san and Suga-san,” Tanaka explains. “Halfway through, they leave and Asashi-san reads until they get back, or til the end of lunch.”

Tanaka pulls out a gigantic fake spider. Snickers.

Noya bites his lip and holds his breath until he can control himself again.

“I’ll sneak up behind and place it on him,” Tanaka says. “And then you walk up and let him know—he’ll be suspicious if he sees me.”

“Do you do this often?”

“I just have a roguish charm that gives me away.”

Noya snorts.

They put the plan into action.

Noya barely keeps it together as Tanaka creeps towards Asahi from behind with grossly exaggerated movements. Asahi reads blithely on, serene in the summer sunshine.

Tanaka places the spider on Asahi’s shoulder, backs up, breath held if his face is any indication.

Noya moves into position.

“Oii, Asahi-san! How’s it—oh… oh my god…” Asahi looks up. “Don’t—don’t freak out, okay?” Asahi looks uneasy. “Don’t freak out, but there’s a giant… spider… on your shoulder…”

A look of pure terror descends on Asahi. He slowly, painfully, turns his head to the side Noya has indicated.

He looks like he’s about to cry, and he hasn’t even seen it yet.

Then, finally, he does.

He _screams_. His scream draws the attention of everyone outside. People look down from the second story windows.

Jumping up and flinging his book down, he scrabbles at his shoulder, flinging it off.

He’s in tears.

So are Tanaka and Noya. They’re both doubled over in laughter, have been from the very first note of Asahi’s scream.

Noya drops to the ground beside Tanaka and pounds the grass with his fist. He can’t stop laughing. He’s going to piss himself! He’s going to have to watch Tanaka piss himself!

They don’t notice Suga and Daichi approaching until Suga says, “Asahi? What’s wrong? You’re crying!”

Tanaka and Noya look up, laughter caught in their throats.

Asahi stands there, limply, his book and his lunch scattered on the ground around him, crying. A kicked puppy wouldn’t look any sadder than this.

Tanaka and Noya both jump back up.

“Oh—oh no—!” they both say. “Don’t cry! It—oh my god—it—it was just a prank!”

Asahi sniffles pathetically.

Daichi folds his arms. “Asahi’s sad face looks like its own form of punishment.”

Noya couldn’t agree more.

Later, as they’re cleaning up—their real punishment for the prank—they both have to grip their brooms tightly to keep upright as they laugh, and laugh, and laugh.

#

Summer training camp is fast approaching. Noya can’t wait. Lost in his daydreams, he forgets his lunch box and has to return to the clubroom to get it.

Akune and Tanaka were the last ones there. Noya wonders if Tanaka is sorting out the permission slip thing. He hopes so; summer training camp wouldn’t be nearly as fun without him.

The door was left ajar. Noya must not have pulled it tight enough. He stands at the corner and listens.

“This still has your sister’s signature on it,” Akune says, confused.

“Yeah,” Tanaka says. Noya can practically see him scuffing his foot.

Akune sighs. “Can I ask why?”

A pause.

“My, uh, my parents are both dead,” Tanaka says.

The world falls away from Noya. He feels like he’s suspended in space. He’d had no idea—none. He’d been to Tanaka’s house how many times now?

“I’m—I’m so sorry,” Akune says, recovering from the shock.

“Anyway,” Tanaka says, bulldozing over him. “That’s why. I didn’t say anything earlier, I don’t really like to talk about it, but sis said…”

He trails off into nothing.

“That’s… fair,” Akune says awkwardly. He coughs. “The form will be fine as-is. I’ll, uh, I’ll lock up. You can go on ahead.”

“Thanks,” Tanaka says, then politely excuses himself.

He opens the door. Exits. Comes face-to-face with Noya.

He stares at Noya.

Noya stares back.

Noya’s face contorts—he has no idea what it does, just knows that it isn’t pretty—and then he turns and—

And he runs.

He fucking runs away.

And he doesn’t look back to see the hurt on Tanaka’s face, either.

#

Noya slows down on a side street, panting, eyes burning. He’s forgotten his lunch box after all. The realization, then, of what he’s done, sinks in.

He walks, kicking a pebble that he doesn’t really see or feel.

What the heck just happened? Did he honestly just… run away?

He bites his lip, trying not to cry.

_He’s going to hate me,_ he thinks. _He’s the best guy on the team, and he’s going to hate me._

Noya goes home in dejected silence.

#

Noya knows what he has to do. Morning practice the next day is—mostly normal. Tanaka is acting the same, as far as Noya can tell, but Noya feels the tension in his gut.

At lunch, he finds Tanaka and pulls him aside.

“I’m sorry!” Noya blurts before Tanaka has a chance to say anything.

Tanaka blinks.

“I shouldn’t have listened,” Noya continues. “And I shouldn’t have run away.” He looks away, disgusted at himself. “I feel like a coward.”

“You?” Tanaka asks, sounding genuinely astonished. “A coward? You’re the ballsiest guy on the team.”

Noya stares at him.

“And,” Tanaka looks away, running his hand across his head. “Don’t worry about it, okay? I was kind of glad. I hate talking about it. Either people pity me or they—or they say, ‘but you’re always so cheerful?’. Like, what the fuck? Should I cry all the time? Would that make my parents happy?”

Tanaka shoves his hands into his pockets, continues looking determinedly away.

“I don’t wanna be sad all the time,” he says. He doesn’t sound like himself, but, at the same time, he does. “And I don’t want to feel guilty about that. I spent—I spent so much time trying not to cry, because that would make it harder on everyone, on sis, and suddenly that’s—wrong of me?”

Noya sniffs.

He’s crying.

He’s fucking crying.

He’s fucking crying next to the vending machines at school.

Tanaka looks back at him, shocked at his effect on Noya.

“You okay?” he asks, kindly, with a hint of surprise and amusement.

Noya cries harder.

“I wanna grow up to be strong like you!” he says.

“What the hell!” Tanaka says, laughter in his voice as his face turns red. “We’re the same age!”

Noya starts shouting, nose clogged and changing his voice into something ugly and funny. “I wanna!! Grow up!! To be strong like Tanaka Ryuunosuke!!”

Tanaka laughs, looks away, rubs at his eyes, and laughs.

#

Tanaka is unusually bashful when he asks Noya over for supper the next day.

“Sis found a recipe for bibimbap online,” he tells Noya, rubbing the back of his head. “Wanna come over?”

Noya jumps in the air. “Woo! Korean food!”

Tanaka punches him, cackles. “You’re jumping for joy now, wait til you try her cooking.”

“That good?” Noya asks, starry-eyed.

Tanaka snorts.

“You’re really selling this to me,” Noya says, snickering.

Tanaka punches him again. They’re called back to practice, punching and picking at each other. They race to Tanaka’s house, yelling profanity at each other.

“Excuse me for the intrusion!” Noya calls, stepping into the house. He’s sweaty and out of breath, and so very, very happy. Tanaka doesn’t hate him after all.

He _loves_ this house. There’s a warmth to it, a casually cluttered, lived-in feel that sets Noya at ease. He breathes in the smell of it, of the beef sizzling on the stove, the freshener Tanaka’s sister buys discounted, and the million other scents that make up the Tanaka household.

He doesn’t need Tanaka to tell him that he’s weird, he already knows, and Tanaka already knows he knows, so Tanaka doesn’t say a thing, just smiles and shakes his head.

“Supper’ll be ready soon,” Tanaka’s older sister says, coming out to greet them. “I had to run out for more sauce ingredients.” She shrugs, like, _what can ya do?_ “I’m Tanaka Saeko, but you can call me Saeko! And you must be the crazy good libero? Ryuunosuke won’t shut up about you.”

“Sis!” hisses Tanaka.

“Nishinoya Yuu!” Noya announces, flustered.

Saeko grins cheekily. “I’ve heard you’ve got some pretty slick moves. I’m excited to see you play.”

Noya is speechless.

“You didn’t tell me he was cute,” Saeko says, turning to Tanaka.

“Why would I tell you that?!” Tanaka asks, only getting more embarrassed.

Later, as they head out for post-supper snacks, Noya says: “Your sister is super hot.”

“And outta your league!” Tanaka yells, shoving him. “Geez,” Tanaka says, shoving his hands into his pockets. He leans his head back as they walk, the picture of confidence and calm, a perfect picture against the bright night sky of Miyagi.

Noya would frame it, if he could.

#

Noya becomes a regular fixture of the Tanaka household. Saeko is the perfect blend of strict and cool, and Tanaka’s room feels like a different universe, one where all the petty things of real life fall away and all that’s left is snacks and easy conversation.

They start having sleepovers after their Saturday games or practice matches. After one particularly thrilling match, Tanaka decides they need to have another recap at two am.

“Your receives were so—so—so—” Tanaka throws his hands up. “They were crazy, man! I’m always so disappointed when I’m in front of you, and can’t see them.”

“You should be watching the court!” Noya chides, throwing his pillow at Tanaka.

“I am!” Tanaka says, laughing and catching the pillow. “I’m watching you!”

Tanaka lays back on the futon he set up so he could sleep on the same level as Noya. He’s wearing a stained t-shirt, and there are wrappers and comic books littered around him. He’s a mess. Noya loves it.

“They’re like the special moves from fighting games,” Tanaka says, and Noya scoffs. “C’mon, man, hear me out! It’s true!” He jolts upright again. “It’d be like—like, ROLLING THUNDER!” he yells.

“Holy _shit,_ ” Noya gasps through his laughter. “Are you _five?_ ” He wipes at his eyes. “I love it!”

Sitting straighter, Noya throws back his head and yells, “ROLLING THUNDER!”

They laugh until Saeko yells at them through the wall to shut up.

Later, when they’ve finally settled down to sleep, Tanaka speaks into the darkness.

“I love playing with you,” he says, voice quiet like he thinks Noya might be asleep. Noya peeks at him. Moonlight spills in through the window, highlighting him in a silver glow.

“Your receives make me feel I can play without worrying about messing up, like, whatever, Noya’s here, it’ll be fine.”

Noya doesn’t know what to say. So he says nothing. They’re silent, and Noya thinks Tanaka might have finally fallen asleep for real.

“Actually,” Tanaka says, “you make me feel like that in general.”

Noya is startled into saying, “huh?”

“Having you in my life,” Tanaka explains, naturally, like this isn’t at all sentimental. It’s just matter-of-fact to him. “I dunno. I can say or do whatever, and it’ll be fine, we’ll still be friends. And if bad shit happens it’s—it’s whatever, Noya is here, it’ll be fine,” he repeats.

A lump forms in Noya’s throat. Strong, brave, Tanaka Ryuunosuke, the guy that stayed strong for his sister’s sake when his parents died, the guy that never backs down from older guys, _that_ guy feels that way about _him_? It should be the other way around.

“Dude,” Noya says into the darkness. His voice is thick with emotion. He’s crying, a little.

“Dude,” Tanaka agrees.

“Dude…” Noya says.

“Dude…” Tanaka agrees, just as somber.

Noya is laughing, his unshed tears making the sound ugly. “Dude!”

“You’re a good guy, Noya.”

“You gotta call me Yuu,” Noya says. “This bond is too real.”

“Yuu… Dude…”

“Ryuu…”

They both turn into their pillows to stifle their laughter.

#

Sometimes Noya ceases to remember that there’s anything unusual about the Tanaka household. Maybe that’s weird of him.

They’re studying as a group again, their winter uniform jackets scattered around them with their papers and books. Tanaka is trying to pry a textbook from underneath his monitor, where he’d been using it as a stand.

While he’s busy, Yoneda turns to Noya.

“Noya, you’re here often. Have you ever met the Tanaka’s?”

Tanaka’s name is so common the question sounds like a joke. But it’s not. There’s silence. Ennoshita wears a look like he knows this isn’t a question they should be asking.

Tanaka has frozen in place. He’s looking at Noya.

Noya wonders what’s right. What does he say? But the longer he puts it off, the weirder it looks, and if he lies—well, he doesn’t need to lie.

“No,” he says. “I haven’t. But, uh, speaking of?” He looks to Tanaka. “Do you want us to grab the snacks? My mom usually brings them, so I always forget to grab ‘em while we’re downstairs.”

“Yeah,” Tanaka says, gratitude shining in his eyes. “I’ll be right down.”

They file, as a group, out of the room and downstairs. Yoneda moves on to the kitchen, but Noya’s eyes catch on a photograph, and he goes over to look at it.

A small Ryuunosuke, maybe nine or ten, stands in front of what Noya guesses are his parents. They all look so happy.

Noya’s feelings must show on his face. Ennoshita approaches him with hesitation.

“Did something happen to them?” he asks Noya.

“Ryuunosuke didn’t tell you?” Saeko asks from the door to the kitchen, startling the both of them into jumping. She has a mug of coffee in one hand and leans against the other on the door jamb. “Well, I guess it’s not an easy topic. They died when he was ten.”

Ennoshita, hearing this for the first time, turns back to the photo. He may have guessed, Noya thinks, but he’s unhappy to have it confirmed.

Noya swallows. Tanaka hates this kind of atmosphere.

“He was a cute kid,” he says to Saeko, jerking his thumb at the photo.

Saeko grins. “Yup! He was one big scraped knee.” She snickers. “Actually, that still describes him, hey, Yuu?”

Noya grins back. “Sure does.”

On cue, Tanaka comes tumbling down the stairs. Ennoshita barely suppresses his laughter. Saeko and Noya don’t even bother.

“What are you guys talking about?” Tanaka asks.

“Just how cute you were as a baby,” Saeko says. “I was just about to grab the baby book.”

“Sis!” Tanaka protests, color rushing to his face.

Saeko winks at him. “’Study hard,’” she says, holding her mug precariously for a moment to make bunny ears with her fingers.

“We’re studying!” Tanaka yells at her retreating back. “Geez,” he mutters, running his hand against the top of his head.

“Your sister is mega cool,” Ennoshita says at last.

“I know,” Noya says, sighing happily.

#

Tanaka is talking about nothing—literally nothing. It’s the most pointless monologue Noya’s ever heard in his life. But looking at him as they walk to school one day, it occurs to Noya that this is his best friend.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise—they’ve been inseparable for months.

_This crazy, stupid, hardworking guy is my best friend,_ thinks Noya. He likes the way it feels.

Overwhelmed with emotion, he does the first thing that comes to mind: he shoves Tanaka.

A little too hard.

Tanaka goes tumbling straight into a pile of trash bags. He looks dumbfounded at his new position, blinks up at Noya like he doesn’t understand what just happened or why.

Noya stares at him.

He didn’t mean to do that.

But now that he has—

He bites his lip, then, calmer, he rubs his chin and stares down at Tanaka.

“It’s as they say,” he says. “’One man’s treasure is another man’s garbage.’”

He watches Tanaka’s face go red, and then he runs.  


 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> If you guessed that Daichi and Suga are leaving at lunch to make out: you're correct. If you guessed that Asahi has guessed this: also correct. Or, if you're not a daisuga shipper, they're practicing receives and perhaps one day Suga will spend his lunch doing something normal.
> 
> Please feel free to say hello to me over [@meribiaa](http://twitter.com/meribiaa)!


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